Sharon Hoogstraten Dancing for Our Tribe sku-1338941126

Dancing for Our Tribe: Potawatomi Tradition in the New Millennium is a hardcover Native American History Books title by photographer and Citizen Potawatomi Sharon Hoogstraten (Edition 1; sku-1338941126). At the height of the Anishinaabe Confederacy, the Potawatomis spread across Canada, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Westward expansion by the fledgling United States of America brought more treaties with them than with any other Indian tribe. Forced removals and repeated treaty-era relocations disrupted their culture and threatened their connections to their ancestors. They have maintained or restored their heritage despite those losses. Beginning with Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Hoogstraten visited all nine nations of the scattered Potawatomi tribe. She photographed present-day Potawatomis in traditional regalia passed down through generations and adapted to tell stories of contemporary life, creating a permanent record. Silver monochrome portraits from the turn of the twentieth century provide a record of Native life, but they can also leave the impression that Indian tribes exist only in the past. This book includes more than 150 formal portraits and handwritten statements showing Native descendants and their regalia amid assimilation, sewing machines, polyester fabrics, duct tape, tattoos, favorite sports teams, military service, and high-resolution digital cameras. The book describes how Potawatomi nations have responded to loss while working to carry their heritage forward. Elders teach language, ribbonwork, beading, and quillwork, and tribal members adapt traditional designs in their art. It presents that work as part of preserving Potawatomi culture for the next seven generations and closes with the declaration, "We Are Still Here."